OK Preps 2015 Feature – Kaden Clay Jackson (OG/C) (UPDATED 12:02 pm)

Image courtesy of Oklahoma QuickTwitch

Under the radar and off the grid are terms you hear thrown a lot. Papi White came out of Seminole h.s. this time last year after running for 3,220 yards (12.8 yards per clip) and 41 touchdowns. Before we profiled him, a lot of coaches had never even heard of him. Growing up playing 8-man football, I was naive enough to think that if you could play, then people would find you. To a degree that’s true, but camps, publicity, and a coach who promotes your game are just as important. If not more so when it comes to getting offers.

My junior and senior year, I had over 100 tackles each season with numerous QB hurries and sacks. I kept waiting and hoping that someone would notice my game, but at the smallest classification of ball in Oklahoma (Class C) there weren’t a lot of coaches beating down our door. Coupled with the fact that we didn’t have a great tradition at my high school, there were a lot of things working against all of us who were trying to get noticed.

Fast forward 18 years and Papi played about 20 miles from where I went to school. Seminole was the “big school” in my area back in my day. Seminole is 3A after all and having more than 20 or 30 people in a class was something I couldn’t even imagine. You’d think that with Seminole being a school with some good tradition, it would be easy for Papi to get noticed. As we get further along with the site, I see more and more guys come across my desk who you see and wonder why they haven’t gotten more attention.

A guy who fits this description is Kaden Jackson from Kingfisher, Ok. Kaden stands 6’3″ and goes about 270 lbs. He won the 3A state championship as a shot putter throwing 50 feet as a freshman and 54 feet as a sophomore. If he keeps improving at that rate, he may approach 60 ft. this year and be well into the 60’s by his senior year. When you hear about this, and a guy being able to throw 50 as a freshman in high school, you automatically assume that he’s explosive, athletic and powerful. If you assumed that by just looking at those numbers, when you turn on his junior film, you are proven correct. When I saw Kaden’s film for the first time, I started looking for what could be wrong with him. He must be small, or go to a really small school, or have a tail or something. There was no way I was really seeing what I was seeing. I watched it two or three times, but every time I looked for something new.

Athleticism…check.
Agility…check.
Size….check
Power…holy crap!
Explosiveness…good lawd!

Watching Kaden go at it is a sight to behold. When you see how powerful his hands are, and how people react to him hitting them, it’s no mystery how he throws the shot as well as he does. Whether he’s playing d-tackle or guard, this kid just blows people up. Do yourself a favor and watch his tape. I haven’t seen many kids who cause as much damage by just touching people. Several times defensively he separated the ball-carrier from the rock with a crushing blow. Then offensively, at guard(where I see him playing in college), the word bulldozer doesn’t do him justice. Maybe if you had a D-6 cat with dynamite strapped to the blade, then we could talk, because people go exactly where Kaden allows them to go.

Scout.com was the only corporate site who had a profile for him, but it didn’t have a lot of info (UPDATE: Rivals has a profile on Kaden – Rivals). Kingfisher won the state championship this past year too, so it’s really hard to understand how someone like him goes unnoticed. Before we anoint him as the next Larry Allen, I’d really like to see what he’s able to do this next year. Going into his senior campaign, he’s definitely someone who is on my radar. Don’t be surprised if you see him blowing up during the spring and going into the summer. This guy is devastating.

UPDATE (12:02 pm): Rival’s does in fact have a profile of Kaden: Rivals

31 Comments

  • EasTex says:

    A very stout young man.
    I see what you mean about his hands. He is beyond “country” strong.
    Your enthusiasm for his abilities is understandable.
    Having played guard I may have had more quickness than this young man, but could only dream of having his power and hand strength.

    • Mark hale says:

      He’s a player. I haven’t seen him play center. OU’s has gone to huge Guards lately. I’d like OU to get him into their camp and take a look at the center position. He’s looks quick enough to get to the second level of a defense. Still it’s 3A so he really has a big gap to be successful at Div 1 football. He obviously has attitude and great hands. I would like to verify his height as well.

  • Shelby is a Patriot says:

    Awesome! Get this kid on the radar!

  • BR says:

    Holy freakin crud!!!

  • soonerbred4ever says:

    He appears to have great balance on his feet. No doubt his shotput training helps with it.

  • Boomer4life says:

    What a frustrating situation these young guy’s have to face! Hope he gets recruited by someone.

  • Andrew says:

    The clip where he hit the running back from the red and white team….the one where the kid looks like road kill (no disrespect) shows how explosive he is. You can’t teach a kid to be that explosive, with that much power and stay under control. You can show them how to do it, but to see a kid actually perform like this is impressive at any level. I like kids that come from rural schools in Oklahoma, great work ethic, respectful and Nasty on the field.

    I hope OU will look for players like this who can red shirt, learn and get stronger so or O and D lines become NATIONALLY feared.

  • bmrsnr says:

    If we can’t find room on our OL for him let him be Rips replacement.

  • thedeez says:

    I’d like to see him and Jalin Barnett go at it in the trenches.

  • dahldennsull says:

    You would think Kingfisher would be big enough for coaches to be talking to him. Curtis Lofton was no small-time recruit out of there, so his coaches just need to get on the phone and help get the word out.

    Hopefully he can get to some camps and show what he can do

    • J.K. Abbott says:

      Trust me OU and other D1’s know all about him. Coach Meyers and his position Coach Nall are two of the more respected HS coaches in the state at any level. They know the game inside and out.

      • Super K says:

        Coach Bedenbaugh does not know who he is.

        • Gary Robbins says:

          I reckon he should. The kid seems athletic and has that Nasty mentality to him. Kind of like I’m going to knock you down and slap you if you try to get up.

  • Todd says:

    JY, is there any story behind the fact that he’s wearing a KSU t-shirt in the pic above?

  • L'carpetron Dookmarriot says:

    I’d sustain fewer injuries if I ran straight into a wall than going against him.

  • EasTex says:

    OT, but thought this was interesting.
    NCAA drops Saban rule.

  • Leroy Jenkins says:

    Jees Louise this Jackson kid is a beast. He plays angry.

  • Sooner Ray says:

    This kid looks like the real deal.

  • CoachStauder says:

    Kid has nice film, but OU offers to kids in 3A and below out of Oklahoma aren’t plenty. I know there are some like Curtis, Ronnell, Jason, etc… but they haven’t offered many in Stoops tenure. Not that the kid can’t play, just that those offers traditionally don’t come. I hope he goes to OU’s camp…only way OU sees him enough to offer, imo.

    You have to also remember that OU just got Dalton, Alvarez and Curtis at G/C, plus has Wariboko and probably Barnett already for this class. Number crunch may get him just like it may get Dahu Green, WR out of Westmoore.

    • Sooner Ray says:

      Gotta agree coach, as sad as that is. Feel bad for some of these kids but this is the big time and OU can’t take everyone, just the way it is.